To make this upcoming new year your best year yet, I have 3 basic areas of study you’ll want to focus on. A word of warning, though: When you focus on these areas in your business and gain competency with the skills you learn, you will start to see amazing things happen. Hint: You need more skills than just marketing for business growth. So be prepared for change!
1. Hire People — And The Right People, At That
No business can scale up to $5 million or $10 million without hiring talent in some capacity. But even mentioning the word “employees” can leave a bad taste in some business owners’ mouths. All they see is the annual salary being shoveled out of their accounts — or the petty squabbles in the break room.
Let me be honest with you. At times, it is difficult to have such a large team. But I know of very few areas in business that are easy. Dealing with difficulty is why you make the big bucks. If you believe no one can do something as well as you, or if you always seem to end up with a bad team, I have some hard, no BS truth for you. It’s not the employees. It’s your leadership skills. Learn to hire the support you need so you can actively work toward your business growth goals.
2. Utilize Systems For Successful Business Growth
There are two main reasons why entrepreneurs have a difficult time managing people. It’s their lack of leadership skills (as we discussed above) and a lack of proper systems. Once you have a solid team in place, you have to make sure they have the tools they need to get the job done.
It is nearly impossible for someone to be a good employee when their guidebook is locked in your head. So, you must have a system in place to communicate your ideas, needs, and goals. Not having processes in place to facilitate workflow is like turning on a fire hydrant without connecting the hose. No one knows what’s going on, and all you end up with is a big mess.
So, set your business up for success from the inside. Create systems for conveying ideas and develop processes for making them a reality. Your team will thank you.
3. Invest In Customer Retention.
Dan S. Kennedy and I co-authored The No B.S. Guide to Maximum Referrals and Customer Retention to address this key point. In summary, this book is all about adopting a new marketing approach by leveraging the influence of the customers you already have.
Have you ever attended one of Dan’s events and seen him go around the room, asking people to raise their hands if they have been with him for five years, 10 years, or even 20 years? How much money do you think someone spends when they’ve been a member of Dan’s mentor program for 20 years? What is this longevity worth? I can’t speak for anyone else, but as someone who is approaching 20 years with Dan, I can tell you I’m in it for a grand total of around $200,000.
If your plan is business growth, it must include an investment in retention. If you don’t focus on this area of your business, you will most definitely be leaving money on the table.
Now, Take Action!
If you are an existing business with steady revenue and a small team, it may be difficult to know where to start. But let me point you in the right direction. First, keep all your existing marketing going. Just hold off from adding anything new for a short while, so you can ensure you have the team to support your new initiatives and elevated marketing campaigns. Second, you need to set your day-to-day systems in place, so you can take some pressure off of yourself and other key team members. Avoid the mess of a loose fire hydrant! Third, you need to plug the holes in your leaky customer bucket and spend some time on customer retention.
Once you’ve gained a solid hold on these three areas, you’ll be ready to develop and implement new marketing systems. Watch next year scale up to be your best year yet.
To learn more about how a custom print newsletter influences business growth through retention, request a copy of our Amazon bestseller, The Ultimate Guide to Newsletters.
